Faculty Profile

Ph.D in Economics, Centre for Economic Studies and Planning, School of Social Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University, 2008. Thesis Titled “The Political Economy of Backwardness in Agrarian Systems: The Role of Social Groups, States and Markets”

Teaching:

• Associate Professor of Global Studies, at the School of Global Affairs, Ambedkar University Delhi, 2018 -
• Assistant Professor, Centre for the Study of Discrimination & Exclusion, School of Social Sciences, JNU, 2013-18.
• Assistant Professor, Centre for Development Studies, Trivandrum, 2012-13.
• Lecturer at the School of Development Studies, Ambedkar University Delhi (AUD), New Delhi: 2009-10
• Lecturer at the Department of Business Economics, University of Delhi, New Delhi: 2002-04
• Lecturer at the Department of Economics, College of Vocational Studies, University of Delhi, New Delhi (on deputation from the Department of Business Economics, DU): July to December 2004
• Guest Faculty at the Institute of Technology and Management, Gurgaon: July to November 2002

Research:

• Co-Principal Investigator, The Afterlife of Industrial Work: From Factory to the Informal Economy, UNU-WIDER, Helsinki 2019-21
• Project Co-ordinator at the Centre for Studies in Science Policy-Economic Research Unit, Jawaharlal Nehru University. Work involved research and policy formulation for rainfed agriculture and low input animal husbandry in India: 2010-12
• Associate Fellow, Council for Social Development, New Delhi. Research work included constructing statistical indices of social development for the Indian states, Social Audit of PDS in Jharkhand, Impacts of NREGA etc. The Social Development Index focused on the dynamics of interlocked inequalities of caste, class and gender in the Indian context: 2008-10

I am an economist specializing in agrarian systems, developmental policy and theories of exclusion and discrimination. I have 15 years of field based research experience in the most backward districts of the country and have also been involved with the policy formulation and implementation process of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005. Additionally, I have been an Advisor to the Core Group of the Socio-Economic & Caste Census, 2011, Ministry of Rural Development, Government of India which involved formulation of the pilot methodology and training of state level enumerators. I have also been invited by the South African Government, 2016, as advisor for formulating models on land reforms, agrarian and rural economic transformation. I have taught for over a decade in four Indian Universities (DU, CDS, AUD, JNU) and have successfully supervised 3 Doctoral theses and 14 M.Phil dissertations.

Journal Articles

• “When the Lewisian Dream Sours: Industrial Aspirations and Reverse Labour Migration”, co-authored with Alessandra Mezzadri, Journal of South Asian Development, December 2022, 17(3), pp. 297-326. https://doi.org/10.1177/09731741221124061
• “The afterlife of industrial work: Urban-to-rural labour transitions from the factory to the informal economy”, co-authored with Alessandra Mezzadri, WIDER Working Paper 2021/158, October 2021, Helsinki: UNU-WIDER. https://doi.org/10.35188/UNU-WIDER/2021/098-6
•  "Inclusive State, Excluded People - The Emperor's New Clothes?", Economic and Political Weekly, November 12, 2016, Vol No. LI No. 46
• “Fight against unemployment: rethinking public works programs” co-authored with Amit Bhaduri and Zahra Karimi Moughari, Real-world Economics Review, issue no. 72, 30 September 2015, pp. 175-185, http://www.paecon.net/PAEReview/issue72/BhaduriEtAl72.pdf
• “Decentralised Procurement and Universalised Public Distribution Systems - A possible economic mechanism for the National Food Security Act”, Economic and Political Weekly, December 24, 2011, Vol No. XLVI No. 52
• “The NREGA, the Maoists and the Developmental Woes of the Indian State” (principal author), Economic and Political Weekly, July 10, 2010.

Chapters in Books

• Entry for “Green Revolution” in Key Concepts in Modern Indian Studies, Edited by Gita Dharmpal Frick, Monika Kirolskar Steinbach, Rachel Dwyer, and Jahnavi Phalkey, Oxford University Press, 2015.
• “Social Development Index, India” in Social Development Report 2010, Oxford Publishing House, New Delhi, India, September, 2010.
• “Rights in Theory and Practice: A Case study of the NREGA” in Social Development Report 2010, Oxford Publishing House, New Delhi, India, September, 2010.

General Writings

• “An MSP scheme to transform Indian agriculture”, co-authored with Amit Bhaduri , The Hindu, India, February 11, 2022. https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/an-msp-scheme-to-transform-indian-agriculture/article38409594.ece?homepage=true
• “Farmers are Spot On: Guaranteed MSP will Make India Stronger”, Newsclick, New Delhi, India, January 2021. https://www.newsclick.in/kisan-andolan-msp-will-make-india-stronger
• “Beef Pork politics and the Bahujan Paradox”, LaLit Magazine, Volume 9, Kathmandu, Nepal, March 2018
• ” Why refining formulas for counting the poor matter”, Hindustan Times, Analysis, New Delhi, India, 12 Oct, 2017.
• “The employment guarantee scheme in India” Amandla!, Issue No.21, Cape Town, South Africa, October 2011.

Invited Lectures:

• Speaker on Panel Discussion for Conference on “The Agrarian Question and Agrarian Unrest in India” in International conference on The Farmers Protest, A Pioneering Field For Social Sciences organised under the aegis of O.P. Jindal Global University (Haryana), with the support of the Global Environmental Justice (GEJ) Group of the University of East Anglia (UK) on 14-15 May 2021
• Valedictory lecture "Towards a Theory of Interlocked Inequalities" in National conference on economic Theory and Policy organised by NIPFP on 31 March 2021
• Lecture "The Economics of Discrimination" in Refresher Course on Cognitive Economics organised by Department of Economics and UGC-HRDC of MANUU on 12 February 2021
• Lecture on "Ambedkar’s Contributions to Indian Political Economy: Some methodological implications" in Methodological Contributions of Thinkers - A lecture series on methodology: 3rd Lecture organised by CRM, AUD on 27 Jan 2021
• Lecture on "Decoding the Farm Laws & Kisan Resistance: Singhu & Beyond" in Webinar organised by Jadavpur University on 2 January 2021
• Lecture on Agrarian Struggles from Farms to Barricades" in Webinar organised by Collective, JNU on 4 December 2020
• Guest Lecture on ‘Countering invisibilisation: How does one analyse data through a gendered lens’, by the Centre for Women's Studies, (CWS, JNU), Jawaharlal Nehru University, 07 March 2019.
• Colloquium Lecture on ‘Theft of livelihoods and the production of criminality: A field view of capitalist accumulation’, by the Centre for the Study of Social Systems (CSSS, JNU), Jawaharlal Nehru University, 31 January 2019.
• Guest Lecture on ‘Developmentalism in a Democracy: understanding backwardness’, by Centre for Social Medicine And Community Health (CSMCH, JNU), Jawaharlal Nehru University, 24 January 2019.
• Speaker on Panel Discussion for Conference on “Moving beyond the Margin: The Politics of Exclusion and Assimilation”, by School of Humanities and Languages, Central University of Rajasthan, 15-16 November, 2018.
• Lecture on “Countering invisibilisation: How does one analyse data through a gendered lens”, School of Gender Studies, TISS Hyderabad, 16 February 2018.
• Symposium lecture on “Rethinking Employment Policies” in Symposium on Labour, Employment & Public Policy, School of Public Policy and Governance, TISS Hyderabad, 15 February 2018.
• Lecture on “Informalisation & Marginalisation”, Economics Department, Visva-Bharati University, Santiniketan, West Bengal, 27 December, 2017.
• Lecture titled "Theft of livelihoods and the production of criminality: a field view of primitive accumulation and exclusion", National Workshop (ICSSR-NRC, New Delhi) on Research Methodology – G B Pant Social Science Institute, Uttar Pradesh, India, 1 – 3 April, 2016
• Speaker in the session on “Stake in Natural Resources: Land and Forest Rights” in the 12th All India Convention of Dalit Adivasi Organisations on “Transforming India and Achieving SDGs: Strengthening the stake of Socially Excluded” on 4 – 5 December, 2015 at Mavalankar Hall, Rafi Marg, New Delhi.
• Chair of session on “Land to Landless Dalits, Adivasis and other landless Marginalised in India” organised by National Confederation of Dalit Organisations (NACDOR), 31st March, 2015 Indian Social Institute, New Delhi.
• Discussant in seminar on ‘Political Economy of Cross-Class Alliances in India’, Centre for Informal Sector and Labour Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi and Josef Korbel School of International Studies & University of Denver, Denver, Date: 4-5 March 2015, JNU
• Guest lecture on "Agrarian Matters: Relevant issues for the Indian Economy" at Centre of Social Medicine and Community Health, JNU, 23rd September 2014
• Guest lecture on “Basic Tenets of Political Economy”, Centre for Development Studies, Thiruvanthapuram 10th March, 2014
• Lecture on “Agrarian Development”, University of Hyderabad, School of Economics – 10th May 2013
• Lecture delivered in Plenary Session on “Labour as a Democratizing Force in South Africa and Beyond” at Global Labour University , NUMSA Conference Center, Newto wn, Johannesburg, 28 September, 2011.
• Lecture delivered in Plenary Session on “Rethinking Development: Searching for Alternatives” , invited by the Centre for Study o f Social Exclusion & Inclusive Policy, Faculty of Social Sciences, Benaras Hindu University , 31st March, 2012.
• Lecture delivered on “Botanical Battlegrounds: Indigenous Knowledge Systems vs. Intellectual Property Rights” , invited by the Centre for Advanced Studies, Burdwan University, West Bengal, 1st October, 2008.
• Lecture delivered on “Relevance of Unorthodox Economic Theory in Public Policy: A case study of the NREGA” , invited by Department of Economics, Burdwan University, West Bengal, 3rd October’2008..

Seminars:

• Paper titled “What can political-economy contribute to an archive of the marginalized” presented at National Seminar on “Archiving Marginalities: Documenting Narratives of the Oppressed” 16-17 March 2016, CES, JNU.
• Paper titled “Interlocked markets in rural areas” presented at National Seminar on Dynamics of Rural Labour Relations in India, 10-12 March, 2016, NIRD, Hyderabad.
• Paper titled “New forms of Forced Commerce & Agrarian Crises:A field view from Marathwada” presented at Seminar on “Agrarian Questions in Contemporary Indian Politics” 18-19 February, 2016, CPS, JNU.
• Paper titled "Interlocked Nature of the Agrarian Crisis: Some preliminary observations on farmers suicides in Beed, Maharashtra" presented at Seminar on “Agrarian Crisis” 16-17 January, 2016, Barnala, Punjab.
• Paper titled “Ambedkar’s Contributions to Indian Developmental Planning: A Political-economic Analysis” National Seminar entitled “Ambedkar’s Contribution to Nation Building: Historical Role Relevance and Contemporary Challenges” held at School of Social Sciences, JNU, 24-25 February, 2014.
• Paper titled "Rainfed Agriculture-Nutrition Pathways in Backward Areas: Can Right Based Approaches Deliver?", National Seminar on Food Security Ordinance 2013 & Its Implications on Backward States at A. N. Sinha Institute of Social Studies, Patna, (September 11-12, 2013
• Paper titled “Crossing the Rubicon of Backwardness: Analysing Effects of public employment on discriminated social groups in India” International Seminar on Social Mobility and Inequality in post-reform India jointly organized by the Centre of Global South Asian Studies, University of Copenhagen and Dept of Sociology, Delhi University, at Delhi University, 7-8th November 2013
• Paper titled “Patronising Distribution : Tackling poverty through Public Distribution System s in India” Paper presented at Conference “Science, Technology and Medicine in India, 1930-2000: The Problem of Poverty” organised by the Centre for the Study of History of Medicine, Warwick University , UK, 12-14 October, 2011.
• Paper titled “Unfree labour and Neoliberal regimes of Accumulation” Paper presented at Global Labour University Conference organised by University of Witwatersrand, South Africa, 29-31 September, 2011.
• Paper titled “The State, Indigenous Societies and the Dynamics of Power: A Case study of Fore sts, Laws and Crime in the Central Forest Regions of India” presented at British Association of South Asian Studies (BASAS) Conference, Edinburgh University, Scotland, 12-13 March, 2009.
• Paper titled “Developmentalism in a Democracy and the Paradox of Backwardness presented at Conference on “Experiencing the State: Marginalised People and the Politics of Development” organi sed by Centre for Research in the Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities, University of Cambridge, UK, 12-13 March, 2009.